Kathmandu, Oct. 6
The Embassy of
the United States of America in Kathmandu has said that Nepal Communist Party
members were not automatically barred from immigrating to the US.
Each visa case is
adjudicated on an individual basis, said the embassy on Tuesday.
Expressing
concerns over the media reports carrying information about the US visas, it
clarified that there was not change in its visa policy.
“We are concerned
that a few news stories have published misleading information about U.S.
visas. We’d like to clarify that there has been no change to our policy,
or to our decades-old law regarding members of communist parties or
totalitarian regimes who are traveling or immigrating to the United States,” it
said in a statement.
U.S. Citizens and
Immigration Services (USCIS) had recently issued administrative guidance –
essentially an instruction manual – to USCIS officers for the immigration
applications of people already within the United States. However, the
mission said, news about this administrative guidance has caused confusion.
In 1952, the U.S.
Congress passed the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), which barred people
from immigrating to the United States on the basis of membership in, or
affiliation with a communist or any other totalitarian party.
“The law provides
for many exceptions and waivers, allowing party members to immigrate to the
U.S. if otherwise qualified. The INA does not affect people wanting to
visit the United States temporarily with a non-immigrant visa,” said the
embassy.
It also said that
the United States welcomed those with diverse backgrounds and beliefs to apply
for visas.
We also respect
Nepal’s multiparty democracy and will continue to work with the country’s
elected government and people to advance bilateral ties and strengthen
democracy as we’ve been doing for the past 73 years, it further said.
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